Cybercrime Trial: Court Orders Arrest of Omoyele Sowore

Presidential Candidate of the African Action Congress, AAC, Omoyele Sowore

Cybercrime Trial: Court Orders Arrest of Omoyele Sowore

The Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the arrest of activist and presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore, after he failed to appear in court for the continuation of his ongoing cybercrime trial involving alleged defamatory social media posts against President Bola Tinubu.

Sowore is standing trial before Justice Mohammed Umar on a two-count charge filed by the Department of State Services (DSS) under the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, Etc.) (Amendment) Act, 2024. The charges stem from posts he allegedly made on his verified X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook accounts, in which he referred to President Tinubu as a “criminal” following a public statement made by the President during a foreign visit.

At Tuesday’s resumed hearing, Sowore was expected to open his defence after previously pleading not guilty during his arraignment on December 2, 2025. However, he was absent from court. He had earlier informed the court in a letter that he travelled to Lagos in search of legal representation after his legal team withdrew from the case, leaving him to temporarily represent himself.

Following an application by DSS counsel, Justice Umar revoked the bail earlier granted to Sowore and issued a bench warrant for his arrest, ordering that he be produced before the court to continue trial proceedings. The court noted that the defendant had been previously warned that failure to attend proceedings—especially under the ongoing day-to-day trial schedule—could result in bail being withdrawn.

READ ALSO:

The DSS alleged that Sowore’s posts, made on August 25, 2025, were capable of inciting public disorder and were intentionally designed to damage the reputation of the President. According to the charge sheet, the posts described President Tinubu in strong language and were published across Sowore’s official social media handles on both X and Facebook.

The prosecution further argued that the statements amounted to cyberstalking and were capable of causing a breakdown of law and order under Sections 24(1)(b) and 24(2)(a), (b), and (c) of the Cybercrimes Act. Evidence tendered includes screenshots of the posts, digital records, and correspondence between the DSS and Sowore requesting deletion of the content.

The DSS had earlier written to X (formerly Twitter) and Meta Platforms Inc., demanding the removal of the posts and requesting the suspension of Sowore’s accounts. It also directly contacted Sowore, urging him to delete the posts from all platforms. While X and Meta were initially included as co-defendants in the case, they were later removed in an amended charge filed before the court.

Before the latest hearing, Sowore had also filed a motion requesting that Justice Umar recuse himself from the case, alleging bias and citing what he described as unfair treatment of his lawyers. He claimed that his legal team withdrew due to intimidation and the court’s decision to adopt a day-to-day hearing process, which he argued contributed to their unwillingness to continue representation. In the meantime, Sowore informed the court that he would represent himself until he secured new counsel. Justice Umar has not ruled on the recusal application and has continued with proceedings in the matter.

The court has adjourned the case for further hearing, with the DSS insisting that the defendant has a case to answer under the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, Etc.) (Amendment) Act, 2024. Sowore remains the sole defendant following the withdrawal of X and Meta Platforms from the amended charge.